Young Gun Kim Juhyung's Rapid Rise... "Now The Open Victory Is Within Sight"

Top Rankers All Out: Personal Best 3rd Place at Genesis Scottish Open, First Career Win Challenge at Major Open on 14th

Kim Joo-hyung is walking on the fairway of the 18th hole on the final day of the Genesis Scotiabank Open. North Berwick (Scotland) = Getty Images / Multibits

[Asia Economy Reporter No Woo-rae] Kim Joo-hyung (20), ranked 61st in the world, is the hope of Korean men's golf.

In November 2019, at just 17 years old, he won the Asian Tour Panasonic Open. In July 2000, he became the youngest champion on the Korean Tour at the Korean Professional Golf Association (KPGA) Gunsan CC Open (18 years and 21 days old), and last year in June, he led the Korean Tour as the 'youngest quadruple winner' by winning the SK Telecom Open. He swept first place in prize money (754.94 million KRW), the Order of Merit (5540.56 points), lowest scoring average (69.16 strokes), and 'Top 10' finishes (9 times).

In 14 tournaments, he achieved 1 win and 3 runner-up finishes, entering the 'Top 5' eight times. He boasted a 'superhuman strength' competing for victory in every tournament. And that’s not all. In January, he won the Singapore International and, including one win and two runner-ups, finished in the 'Top 10' six times, becoming the Asian Tour money leader ($507,553). He is the fourth player to do so following Kang Wook-soon (56), who topped the money list twice in 1996 and 1998, and No Seung-yeol (31) in 2010.

Especially notable were his brilliant performances in the last four tournaments: runner-up at the Blue Canyon Championship in November last year, 7th place at the Laguna Phuket Championship in December, winning the Singapore International, and tied for 2nd at the final SMBC Singapore Open in January. He set a new milestone as the first Korean player to become both the Korean Tour and Asian Tour money leader. As of August 2020, he is seeking to enter the world league by competing on the PGA Tour, including participating in the major PGA Championship.

On the early morning of the 11th (Korean time), Kim Joo-hyung showcased outstanding skills at the DP World Tour (formerly European Tour) and PGA Tour co-sanctioned Genesis Scottish Open (total prize money $8 million) held at The Renaissance Golf Club in North Berwick, Scotland (par 70, 7,293 yards). On the final day, he recorded 4 birdies and 1 bogey. He achieved his personal best PGA Tour finish of 3rd place (5 under par 275), surpassing his previous best of tied 15th at the Puerto Rico Open in March last year.

This tournament served as a warm-up for the 'oldest major,' The Open Championship, which will continue on the 14th at the Old Course at St Andrews, Scotland. Top-ranked players including No. 1 Scottie Scheffler (USA) gathered, drawing the spotlight. Kim Joo-hyung smoothly progressed with birdies on holes 5 and 8 and consecutive birdies on holes 16 and 17, but missed a 1.43m par putt on the final 18th hole (par 4), falling short of collecting the winner’s trophy.

However, his long drives up to 353 yards, fairway hit rate of 84.62%, and greens in regulation rate of 83.33% stood out. His scrambling ability (100%) to save par when missing the green was impressive. Kim said, "I was not at all disappointed about the bogey on the 18th hole," and explained, "Achieving a good result in this tournament gave me more confidence. I believe that if I work hard, I can perform even better than now."

Having perfectly adapted to the links course, Kim Joo-hyung will compete in the 150th Open Championship, challenging for his first career victory. He said, "I heard that the course in this tournament is similar to The Open, and I hope this upward momentum continues." This year, the total prize money increased by 22% from last year’s $11.5 million to $14 million, with the winner’s prize at $2.5 million. With the stakes raised, his desire to win is also high.